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Deprecated: Assigning the return value of new by reference is deprecated in /homepages/36/d320987382/htdocs/alaskabirding/rarebirds/wp-includes/theme.php on line 540Alaska Rare Bird Alert » Blog Archive » RBA for June 3rd - June 8th BRISTLE-THIGHED CURLEW

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* AKSPI 08.06.08

Hello Birders, this is the St. Paul Island rare bird alert for the week of June 2-June 8, 2008 sponsored by St. Paul Island Tour. The following sequence of sightings is in taxonomic order; an asterisk denotes a species of less than annual occurrence or one of particular note.

Birds Mentioned:

Cackling Goose (ssp. leucopareia)

Cackling Goose (ssp. minima)

Brant

Greater White-fronted Goose

Eurasian Wigeon

American Wigeon

Mallard

Northern Shoveler

White-winged Scoter

Black Scoter

Bufflehead

Common Goldeneye

Red-breasted Merganser

*COMMON MERGANSER (Goosander)

COMMON LOON

Short-tailed Shearwater

Sandhill Crane

Pacific Golden-Plover

Bar-tailed Godwit

Whimbrel (ssp. variegatus)

*BRISTLE-THIGHED CURLEW

Rock Sandpiper (ssp. Tschuktschorum)

*WOOD SANDPIPER

Pectoral Sandpiper

*COMMON SANDPIPER

Semipalmated Sandpiper

Western Sandpiper

*COMMON SNIPE

Wilson’s Snipe

Long-billed Dowitcher

Short-billed Dowitcher

Red Phalarope

Long-tailed Jaeger

Parasitic Jaeger

Herring Gull (ssp. vegae)

Slaty-backed Gull

Glaucous Gull

***BLACK-TAILED GULL

Sabine’s Gull

Artic Tern

Rhinocerous Auklet

Ancient Murrelet

Short-eared Owl

Tree Swallow

Bank Swallow

*****RUFOUS-TAILED ROBIN

American Pipit

*RED-THROATED PIPIT

Eastern Yellow Wagtail

*VARIED THRUSH

Golden-crowned Sparrow

Dark-eyed Junco

Common Redpoll

Hoary Redpoll

*BRAMBLING

The early part of the week brought us light winds and gorgeous weather. A strong westerly storm began Wednesday night and continued for 24 hours pummeling the island with 50mph winds making birding very tough. By Friday the storm had cleared and the weather settled into light west/southwest winds through the weekend.

WATERFOWL

A GOOSANDER(COMMON MERGANSER) was found off Sea Lion Neck on the 8th. Small numbers of minima & Leucopareia Cackling Geese were seen throughout the week. A pair of female Buffleheads remained through the week, and a pair of Mallards were observed on the 7th-8th. Common Goldeneye was observed on the 6th. Brant was last seen on the 2nd, and Greater White-fronted Goose was last seen on the 3rd. Small numbers of shovelers, wigeon, and scaup remained throughout the week.

SEABIRDS & GULLS

The Pribilof’s first BLACK-TAILED GULL was discovered on the 6th flying by Marunich with a group of Kittiwakes exposing its dark tail band. The bird was then refound in the harbor for incoming group of tourists, giving everyone exceptional views of this long overdue bird. A beautiful Sabine’s Gull was found bathing with kittiwakes on Weather Bureau Lake on the 6th. An Artic Tern was observed on the 2nd & 3rd. A second-year Salty-backed Gull was observed on the 2nd & an adult bird and a 1st year bird were observed on the 8th. A vega Herring Gull was found on Salt Lagoon on the 8th. Two Rhinocerous Auklets were observed off SW Point on the 8th. A COMMON LOON was observed on the 8th at Marunich. Multiple Siberian WHIMBRELS were present on the island throughout the week. A Short-billed Dowitcher was found on the 2nd and a Long-billed Dowitcher turned up on the 6-7th. A Semipalmated Sandpiper was found at Webster Lake on the 2nd. Western Sandpiper was observed on the 6th-7th. A Mainland Rock Sandpiper was found near North Beach on the 7th, a Pectoral Sandpiper was found on Webster Lake 6th-8th. Bar-tailed Godwits were observed the first half of the week, and Pacific Golden Plovers were seen on the 7th-8th.

SHOREBIRDS

A COMMON SANDPIPER found feeding along the beach at Marunich was a pleasant surprise on the 8th. The season’s first WOOD SANDPIPER was observed calling over the Kamanista Quarry on the 6th. The BRISTLE-THIGED CURLEW was seen again at Northeast point on the 2nd. A COMMON SNIPE was found at Northeast Point on the 4th. Wilson’s Snipe was observed displaying over Webster Lake on the 2nd & 5th.

LANDBIRDS & PASSERINES

The excitement continues this spring with the discovery of the Pribilof’s first RUFOUS-TAILED ROBIN on the 9th. The bird was discovered late Sunday evening at Hutchinson Hill after all participants had gone to bed. We aroused our clients from their hotel rooms and the chase was on. After a short search we kicked the robin up, it proved to be quite flighty but the bird did perch up occasionally on a rocky outcropping and everyone was able to get very satisfactory views. This species is normally confined to NE China and SE Russia; this is only the second sighting of this species in North America, the other being a June 2000 sighting on Attu. A male VARIED THRUSH was found in Kaminista Quarry on the 5th and was then joined by a female on the 6th. A male BRAMBLING was discovered around Webster House on the 6th. A RED-THROATED PIPIT was flushed near North Beach on the 2nd and a second bird was found at Lukanin Point on the 4th.

An Eastern Yellow Wagtail was found at Webster House on the 2nd and another bird was found at Reef Point on the 6th. A Slate-colored Dark-eyed Junco was found at Reef Point on the 2nd. A Golden-crowned Sparrow was seen in the Quarry on the 4th and then again on the 4th. American Pipit and both redpolls were last seen on the 2nd. A small fallout of Bank Swallows were seen on the 2nd, and a single Tree Swallow was found at Webster House on the 6th and 7th. Short-eared Owl was observed on the 2nd & 8th and a small group of Sandhill Cranes were observed on the 7-8th.

Regularly occurring species now present on the island:

Northern Pintail

Green-winged (and Common) Teal

Greater Scaup

King Eider

Harlequin Duck

Long-tailed Duck

Red-necked Grebe

Northern Fulmar

Red-faced Cormorant

Pelagic Cormorant

Semipalmated Plover

Wandering Tattler

Ruddy Turnstone

Least Sandpiper

Rock Sandpiper (ssp. ptilocnemis)

Red-necked Phalarope

Glaucous-winged Gull

Black-legged Kittiwake

Red-legged Kittiwake

Common Murre

Thick-billed Murre

Pigeon Guillemot

Parakeet Auklet

Least Auklet

Crested Auklet

Tufted Puffin

Horned Puffin

Winter Wren (ssp. priblofensis)

Lapland Longspur

Snow Bunting

Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch (ssp. umbrina)

For tour information or to make travel arrangements visit our website http://www.alaskabirding.com or call 1-877-424-5637. This is Dylan Radin(dylard96@gmail.com), Cameron Cox, Scott Schuette, the 2008 St. Paul Island Tour guides, wishing you good birding.